32-767: The Arms Crisis was a political scandal in the Republic of Ireland in 1970 in which Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney were dismissed as cabinet ministers for alleged involvement in a conspiracy to smuggle arms to the Irish Republican Army in Northern Ireland . At the ensuing Arms Trial , charges against Blaney were dropped, and Haughey, along with co-defendants Captain James Kelly , John Kelly and Belgian businessman Albert Luykx , were found not guilty of conspiracy. Blaney claimed that
64-580: A constitutional ban on abortion . In 1992, he objected to the political reforms proposed by party leader Proinsias De Rossa , and remained in the Workers' Party after the formation of Democratic Left . He regarded Democratic Left as having compromised socialism in the pursuit of political office. In his later years, Goulding spent much of his time at his cottage in Raheenleigh near Myshall , County Carlow . He died of cancer in his native Dublin , and
96-452: A political scandal is an action or event regarded as morally or legally wrong and causing general public outrage. Politicians , government officials, party officials and lobbyists can be accused of various illegal, corrupt , unethical or sexual practices. Politicians and officials who are embroiled in scandals are more likely to retire or get lower vote shares. Scandal sells, and broadsides, pamphlets, newspapers, magazines and
128-732: A meeting of the Northern Citizen Defence Committees , which had been set up to defend nationalist areas from unionist attack, and which included IRA officers, was held in Bailieborough , County Cavan , with Irish Army intelligence officer Captain James Kelly in attendance. Captain Kelly promised the Northern Citizen Defence Committees £50,000, that would be made available to buy weapons for defense of nationalist areas against loyalist attack. After
160-463: A result, there was a major cabinet reshuffle and some senior politicians of the future, such as Desmond O'Malley and Gerry Collins , got their first step on the ministerial ladder. The scandal led to bitter divisions in Fianna Fáil between supporters of the sacked ministers Haughey and Blaney and supporters of Lynch. The same divisions affected government policy on Northern Ireland. Although
192-650: The Department of Justice , published in Magill magazine, claimed that Lynch had not been forthright publicly. Documents released through the Freedom of Information Act 30 years later showed that the state had altered statements by Colonel Hefferon to suppress the fact that he and Captain Kelly had kept Gibbons informed. This caused the then Taoiseach , Bertie Ahern , to publicly state that Captain Kelly had done nothing wrong. Political scandal In politics ,
224-727: The Garda Síochána Special Branch were aware of the plot and had informed Lynch. However, Lynch took no action until the leader of the opposition, Liam Cosgrave was also informed by the Special Branch of the smuggling scheme and pressed the Taoiseach to take action. Haughey and Blaney were sacked by Lynch on 6 May when they refused to resign. Kevin Boland , the Minister for Social Welfare resigned from
256-803: The Garda Síochána . Goulding along with John Joe McGirl and ten others were subsequently sentenced to twelve months in prison. Upon his release in 1947, Goulding organised IRA training camps in the Wicklow Mountains . He took charge of the IRA's Dublin Brigade in 1951. In 1953, he (along with Seán Mac Stíofáin and Manus Canning ) was involved in an arms raid on the Officers' Training Corps armoury at Felsted School in Essex. The raid provided
288-484: The Bailiebourough meeting, Kelly reported directly to Blaney, who in turn brought him to Haugheys's house to give account of the meeting. Kelly suggested that the government should support the IRA, acknowledging "this would mean accepting the possibility of armed action of some sort as the ultimate solution". Blaney allegedly made plans with Captain Kelly to import weapons from continental Europe. Haughey provided
320-424: The IRA with 99 rifles, 18 Bren and Sten guns, one anti-tank gun, a two-inch mortar and a Browning machine gun. The three men were arrested and sentenced with eight-year prison terms, but were released in 1959 after serving only six years at Pentonville , Wakefield and Stafford prisons. In 1956, an attempt was made by the IRA to free Goulding from Wakefield Prison, but this was aborted when alarms were sounded at
352-592: The electronic media have covered it in depth. The Muckraker movement in American journalism was a component of the Progressive Era in the U.S. in the early 20th century. Journalists have built their careers on exposure of corruption and political scandal, often acting on behalf of the opposition party. The political ideology of media owners plays a role—they prefer to target the opposition but will reluctantly cover their own side. Journalists have to frame
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#1732782540599384-411: The events led to Haughey being demoted to the back-benches, he remained a member of Fianna Fáil, while Boland was expelled in 1970 and Blaney in 1971. Blaney went on to found his own party, Independent Fianna Fáil , which re-joined Fianna Fáil in 2006, eleven years after Blaney's death. Haughey later returned to ministerial office and succeeded Lynch as party leader in 1979. There was no rapprochement in
416-755: The government in protest at the sackings as he was adamant (as were the accused) that Jack Lynch and most of the Cabinet—in particular Jim Gibbons , then Minister for Defence —knew about the plan to import arms. The Minister for Justice, Mícheál Ó Móráin who was in hospital at the time was asked to resign on 4 May. He later claimed that he had in fact informed Lynch of the individuals involved. On 28 May 1970, Haughey and Blaney went on trial in Dublin , together with an Irish Army intelligence officer, Captain James Kelly , John Kelly and Belgian businessman Albert Luykx , who had allegedly agreed to use his contacts to acquire
448-522: The hardline Blaney, Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries who was from the Donegal North-East constituency bordering Northern Ireland were members of the subcommittee, along with Pádraig Faulkner and Joseph Brennan . Jack Lynch took little interest in the work of the subcommittee, and after an initial meeting, Faulkner and Brennan seem to have left their senior colleagues Haughey and Blaney to their own devices. A government fund of £100,000
480-703: The legitimate attempts of the people to defend themselves against the B-Specials and the sectarian Orange (Protestant) murder gangs." He remained Chief of Staff of what became known as the Official IRA until 1972. Although the Official IRA, like the Provisional IRA, carried out an armed campaign, Goulding argued that such action ultimately divided the Irish working class. After public revulsion at
512-734: The money for the purchase from his civilian relief fund, and also made a failed attempt to arrange customs clearance for the shipment. Haughey met with the IRA Chief of Staff Cathal Goulding . Garda Special Branch informed the Minister for Justice Mícheál Ó Móráin of this meeting and he reported it to the Cabinet, but Haughey dismissed it as a chance encounter. In November 1969, a Belfast republican leader named John Kelly, and Haughey's brother Jock, traveled to London to purchase arms, but Kelly became suspicious that their plot had been discovered and they returned to Ireland. By late April 1970,
544-680: The prison. During his time in Wakefield prison, he befriended EOKA members and Klaus Fuchs , a German-born spy who had passed information about the US nuclear programme to the Soviet Union . In so doing, Goulding became interested in the Russian Revolution . He was appointed IRA Quartermaster General in 1959, and in 1962 succeeded Ruairí Ó Brádaigh as IRA Chief of Staff . In February 1966, together with Seán Garland , Goulding
576-475: The rebel ministers and his detractors saw it as an illustration of his weakness on the national question and procrastination in the face of difficult decisions. As state papers relating to the period were released after 1995, further light was shed on the events, questioning the outcome. Much remains unknown about the truthfulness of the various personalities involved, and what exactly each knew, and when they came to know it. The diaries of Peter Berry, Secretary of
608-569: The relationship between Gibbons and Haughey and when Haughey became Taoiseach, Gibbons was dropped from his ministerial office. During a later leadership contest, Gibbons was assaulted in Dáil Éireann by Haughey supporters in retaliation for his testimony at the Arms Trial. The events came to be one of the defining periods of Lynch's term as leader, during which there were several crises. Lynch supporters saw him as exhibiting strength in facing down
640-597: The shooting death of William Best, a Catholic from Derry who was a British soldier, and the bombing of the Aldershot barracks , the Official IRA announced a ceasefire in 1972. Goulding was prominent in the various stages of Official Sinn Féin's development into the Workers' Party . Along with his partner, Moira Woods, he was involved in the Anti-Amendment Campaign in opposition to the introduction of
672-429: The story in terms of the audience's values and expectations to maximize the impact. Cathal Goulding Cathal Goulding ( Irish : Cathal Ó Goillín ; 2 January 1923 – 26 December 1998 ) was Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the Official IRA . One of seven children born on East Arran Street in north Dublin to an Irish republican family, as a teenager Goulding joined Fianna Éireann ,
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#1732782540599704-522: The then Minister of Agriculture, was an outspoken critic of government policy on Northern Ireland. In a speech in 1969 he said "the Fianna Fail party has never taken a decision to rule out the use of force if the situation in the Six Counties so demand". Haughey had not publicly opposed Lynch's policy, but was concerned about being outflanked by his Fianna Fáil leadership rival. In October 1969,
736-593: The then government knew about the plan, while Haughey denied this. The events occurred during the Fianna Fáil government of Jack Lynch . Amid the 1969 Northern Ireland riots , which would lead to the Troubles , nationalist families were being forced from their homes, and refugees "streamed over the border" into the Republic. The Dublin government established a cabinet subcommittee to organise emergency assistance and relief. Haughey, then Minister for Finance and
768-436: The trial there was a direct contradiction of evidence regarding the sanctioning of the imports between Haughey and the chief prosecutorial witness, Jim Gibbons, Minister for Defence at the time of the attempted imports. Haughey admitted arranging customs clearance for the shipment, but claimed in his defence that he did not know it consisted of weapons. This directly contradicted the evidence of Gibbons and Peter Berry that Haughey
800-465: The weapons. All charges against Blaney were dropped in the District Court on 2 July 1970 and as a result he was not tried, before the main trial got underway under Justice Aindrias Ó Caoimh . The trial collapsed a week later as Ó Caoimh withdrew after allegations of bias. Following a second trial, presided over by Justice Seamus Henchy , the other four defendants were cleared on 23 October. At
832-690: The youth wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA). He joined the IRA in 1939. In December of that year, he took part in a raid on Irish Army ammunition stores in Phoenix Park , Dublin; and in November 1941 he was gaoled for a year in Mountjoy Prison for membership of an unlawful organisation and possession of IRA documents. On his release in 1942, he was immediately interned at the Curragh Camp , where he remained until 1944. Goulding
864-560: Was arrested for possession of a revolver and ammunition; in total he spent sixteen years in British and Irish jails. Goulding was instrumental in moving the IRA to the left in the 1960s. He argued against the policy of abstentionism and developed a Marxist analysis of Irish politics. He believed the British state deliberately divided the Irish working class on sectarian grounds, in order to exploit them and keep them from uniting and overthrowing their bourgeois oppressors. This analysis
896-407: Was fully aware of all the details of the conspiracy. It also contradicted the testimony of his co-defendants, who admitted that they had tried to import weapons, but maintained that the shipment had been legally authorised by the government. During the trial the judge remarked that either Haughey or Gibbons had to be committing perjury. The resignations and sackings left four vacancies in cabinet. As
928-529: Was involved in 1945 in attempts to re-establish the IRA, which had been badly affected by the authorities in both the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland . He was among twenty-five to thirty men who met at O'Neill's pub, Pearse Street, to try to re-establish the IRA in Dublin. He organised the first national meeting of IRA activists after World War II , in Dublin in 1946. This gathering was raided by
960-492: Was rejected by those who later went on to form the Provisional IRA after the 1969 IRA split. In August 1969 Goulding issued a statement that IRA men had been moved into Northern Ireland to defend Catholics that had been "terrorized by mobs backed by armed B-Specials." (The B-Specials were part of a reserve police force formed in 1920). Gouldings statement went on to warn that British forces must not be "used to suppress
992-721: Was seen to be unworkable and was not adopted by the cabinet. The nationalist areas were given a form of protection later in August by British forces in Operation Banner , and Lynch saw this as an effective short-term measure. On 30 October 1968, Lynch had met with Harold Wilson , the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom , in London and had called on Britain to take steps to end the partition of Ireland . Blaney,
Arms Crisis - Misplaced Pages Continue
1024-638: Was set up to provide relief to civilians forced out of their homes by the Troubles, and Haughey was given sole authority over this money. Haughey and Blaney disapproved of the cautious policies of Taoiseach Lynch on Northern Ireland and favoured a more robust approach. In August 1969, after Blaney had proposed military intervention in Northern Ireland, Lynch had asked Irish Army Intelligence to draft proposals for limited military intervention in Northern Ireland to protect nationalist areas from Ulster loyalist mobs, known as Exercise Armageddon , but it
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